Living Fearlessly.

Structure Your Grind

Alas. The school year is here. And as we all know, the grind will begin shortly. I’m 100% for it. However, I aspire to grind smarter not harder. This can easily be achieved by amping up your organization skills. So here’s some tips to make your school year flow a little more smoothly.

1) Purchase a planner.

Please. If you have not already purchased one, do it now. By any means necessary (a little hyperbolic, I know). It doesn’t have to be expensive as long as it does its job. Writing your tasks down will decrease your chance of forgetting and allow you to schedule time to complete your assignments, extracurriculars, and job. At the beginning of the semester I write down my test dates, major assigment due dates, and professors’ office hours. I have the same planner as last year: The Simplified Planner by Emily Ley ($58). Check out my favorite planners post for more suggestions!

It’s extremely difficult to get things done in a messy environment. By implementing a schedule for cleaning you ensure a perpetually clean living space. Tasks don’t have to be more than 15-30 minutes a day. Overall, a clean area is less stressful and keeps your mental state peaceful during an stressful semester. Here’s a copy of mine. It consists of daily, weekly, and monthly tasks. 🙂

3) Download a password saver.

I cannot recall how much time I’ve wasted trying to remember passwords to my various accounts. Having to retrieve or reset your password wastes time and decreases efficiency. Save your passwords in your browser. For extra back-up use LastPass, a secure password manager. (I’ve done research & it’s very safe).

4) Organize your courses.

After my first two years I realized that I needed a more efficient way to keep track of all my classes. After speaking with my best friend, I decided on this method of organization: I have 1 binder that I carry with me on campus. That binder has sections for every class. However, I only take the stuff I need for the week in the large binder to ensure my bag doesn’t get too heavy. At the end of the week, I place the papers/notes back into their individual binders that are organized by subject. I used some cute binder covers to make them look more appealing!

5) Create a study plan.

One of my biggest mistakes in the past was going to study without a plan. I would aimlessly look over notes from various areas with no specific plan of action. Creating a study plan of things you want to accomplish ensures that you complete tasks. For example, Monday: finish all the practice problems from Chapters 11-13, and memorize the vocabulary. Structure your review for the week and prevent yourself from falling behind 🙂 At my university you can rent out study rooms. You can even rent out rooms days before. It’s convenient because you’ll never have to search for a spot in the library. I rent mine out at the same time regularly so that I can get into the habit of studying.

6) Use a white board.

This is key especially if you’re a science major. I used to use pages of notebook paper on practice problems. Instead, I bought a mini white board where I can do endless problems without wasting paper. This tactic helped me memorize a ton of medical terminology in a span of 4 days this summer! I often pretend to reteach the information I learned using my whiteboard. As an active form of learning, it is extremely effective.

I hope these tips were helpful! If y’all have any suggestions leave them in the comments below 🙂